Investors Buy High Volume of Put Options on BHP Group (NYSE:BHP)

BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders bought 6,375 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 96% compared to the average daily volume of 3,257 put options.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of BHP Group by 110.0% during the 2nd quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 460 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd purchased a new stake in BHP Group during the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new position in shares of BHP Group during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of BHP Group in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of BHP Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors own 3.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on BHP shares. StockNews.com lowered BHP Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Citigroup raised BHP Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Liberum Capital restated a “hold” rating on shares of BHP Group in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.00.

BHP Group Price Performance

BHP stock opened at $56.94 on Wednesday. BHP Group has a 1-year low of $54.28 and a 1-year high of $69.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $58.16 and its 200 day moving average is $60.13.

BHP Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a $1.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a yield of 5.2%.

BHP Group Company Profile

BHP Group Limited operates as a resources company in Australia, Europe, China, Japan, India, South Korea, the rest of Asia, North America, South America, and internationally. The company operates through Copper, Iron Ore, and Coal segments. It engages in the mining of copper, silver, zinc, molybdenum, uranium, gold, iron ore, and metallurgical and energy coal.